K-1 Pictures

[hattia86 0]

Hello, I met my fiance in Egypt just this past summer. I want to apply for a K-1 visa for him to marry him here. But because of our culture, we may have different standards for what constitutes a genuine relationship. We have phone records of our relationships, but no photos of us together. We both come from a conservative Muslim background and "conventional" dating is discouraged.

The way marriages are done for us is sort of in reverse of western marriages. The man asks as her father for the girl's hand in marriage, then upon approval from the parents, family, and the girl, the couple begins to discuss whether they are compatible enough to continue to relationship, as well as marriage plans. Since the whole process is with the intent of marriage, the courtship period is usually much shorter. For us, it was a little over 4 months.

I saw him in Egypt and I have plane tickets to prove I was there. Also, we have phone records of the relationship. Since everything was discussed over the phone, there were no emails discussing the relationship. However, there are records of blood and DNA tests that were done to rule out any genetic disorders that might come up in children. These tests were done because my fiance and I happen to be half-cousins, a practice that is very common in the Middle East. I am hoping these genetic tests will indicate the seriousness of the relationship since they are in regard children in the future.

I plan to explain the cultural conditions of our engagement as well was explain the evidence given, or lack thereof. I am also planning to get my parents and his parents to write letters of our relationship.

I am hoping and praying this will be enough. What do you think?

[NigeriaorBust 4,087]

Is your relationship far enough apart to be allowed in the state you reside in. Most states have laws that prevent marriages between anyone closer than second cousins.

[hattia86 0]

I am from California and cousin marriage are not against the law here. We researched that as well before we decided to get married.

Also, he is not a full cousin. He is my mother's half brother's son. If that makes any sense...

[pushbrk 13,118]

Is your relationship far enough apart to be allowed in the state you reside in. Most states have laws that prevent marriages between anyone closer than second cousins.

They don't have to marry in the State in which they intend to reside. A half-cousin is genetically halfway between a first and second cousin, so they can marry in any of 20 States and potentially 25. It's not really a major issue.

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Hello, I met my fiance in Egypt just this past summer. I want to apply for a K-1 visa for him to marry him here. But because of our culture, we may have different standards for what constitutes a genuine relationship. We have phone records of our relationships, but no photos of us together. We both come from a conservative Muslim background and "conventional" dating is discouraged.

The way marriages are done for us is sort of in reverse of western marriages. The man asks as her father for the girl's hand in marriage, then upon approval from the parents, family, and the girl, the couple begins to discuss whether they are compatible enough to continue to relationship, as well as marriage plans. Since the whole process is with the intent of marriage, the courtship period is usually much shorter. For us, it was a little over 4 months.

I saw him in Egypt and I have plane tickets to prove I was there. Also, we have phone records of the relationship. Since everything was discussed over the phone, there were no emails discussing the relationship. However, there are records of blood and DNA tests that were done to rule out any genetic disorders that might come up in children. These tests were done because my fiance and I happen to be half-cousins, a practice that is very common in the Middle East. I am hoping these genetic tests will indicate the seriousness of the relationship since they are in regard children in the future.

I plan to explain the cultural conditions of our engagement as well was explain the evidence given, or lack thereof. I am also planning to get my parents and his parents to write letters of our relationship.

I am hoping and praying this will be enough. What do you think?

There is no requirement for any particular "thing" You have to demostrate you have met the requirements for a petition to be approved. Photos in addition to other documents are great for that. You don't have any. If you get an RFE you will not be able to answetr it and your petition will be denied. File what you have and hope for the best.

Phone records do not prove you met in person and do not make up for meeting in person. You must be able to legally marry in the state where you will get married. If they allow half-cousins to marry, then you meet that qualification for the petition. It does NOT mean you will get a visa in a high fraud consulate like Egypt. That is a major red flag.

USCIS, for the petition, does not care about your relationship. Their requirements are VERY simple...

1. Petitioner MUST be a US citizen

2. Both must be willing and ABLE to get married to each other

3. Both must sign a letter of intent to get married within 90 days of the arrival of the beneficiary.

4. You MUST have met in person within two years from when you file the petition.

That's it. Meet those requirements and your petition gets approved. If you do not meet them, no amount of "other stuff" will make a difference. Approved petition sdo not mean an approved visa. For that you must show evidence of relationship. Being related to the petitioner is a major red flag in high fraud consulates. Be aware and prepare for that.

[hattia86 0]

Thanks for the info. I do meet all the requirements for the petition. I am a US citizen, we are both willing and able to get married, we will get married as soon as he gets here, and we have met just this past summer. I have the plane tickets and credit card statements to prove it.

Just no photos...

[Gary and Alla 3,694]

Thanks for the info. I do meet all the requirements for the petition. I am a US citizen, we are both willing and able to get married, we will get married as soon as he gets here, and we have met just this past summer. I have the plane tickets and credit card statements to prove it.

Just no photos...

So file your petition and sleep well.

[Inky 1,111]

You may want to find out just how important it is to the US embassy in his country. If you get by in the USA with what you have.. you may not get by at his embassy without certain things!

I would recomend asking in the specific countrys region section on the forum for imput on what was requested at interviews for that embassy/country.

[Aztec&Taino 144]

Thanks for the info. I do meet all the requirements for the petition. I am a US citizen, we are both willing and able to get married, we will get married as soon as he gets here, and we have met just this past summer. I have the plane tickets and credit card statements to prove it.

Just no photos...

Photos are secondary evidence. Focus on the primary evidence that proves you have met in person, such as photocopies of your American passport pages showing the stamps entering Egypt and your boarding passes. Also, you can include copies of your credit card statements and receipts of purchases made while in Egypt. You can also include calling records in order to "front load" your petition (to include more evidence than requested so that the beneficary's consulate gets a chance to see it before the day of the interview).

Best wishes!

[SunDrop 59]

I have the plane tickets and credit card statements to prove it.

Just no photos...

Don't rely on the tickets and statements. You could have bought a ticket and never used it. Do you have the boarding passes or luggage tags? These demonstrate that you actually boarded a plane to xyz destination. Even if it's just one leg of the trip (namely the return part) you had to travel there to come back, iyswim.

There's 2 stages to obtaining a K-1, the visa petition and then the visa application. The petition requires only the primary evidence of having met. The visa application, depending on the Embassy, is when people often require proof of relationship. Most include some evidence of relationship with their initial K-1 petition because the entire package gets forwarded to the Embassy. Some embassies are more demanding than others, but all adhere to the local cultural norms. For example, if it is very uncommon for couples to have an older woman in xyz country, then couples for whom this is true (especially when she's the USC) may find the embassy challenges their relationship more. It's therefore very helpful when submitting your petition, to spend a little time reading up on your regional forum about the way your particular embassy works, in members' experience.

Good luck

[loveMDE 17]

On 12/18/2010 at 6:42 PM, pushbrk said:

They don't have to marry in the State in which they intend to reside. A half-cousin is genetically halfway between a first and second cousin, so they can marry in any of 20 States and potentially 25. It's not really a major issue.

I've seen your name all over visa journey and seems like you know so much! My fiancé who is my half cousin had his interview in Bogotá. They said that they were going to give our papers to they lawyers because they didn't know the laws about cousin marriage. I live in PA but we would marry in NC, do we have a chance of getting his visa? Should we call the embassy or send them info about the states? 

Thank you Alejandra 

please message me 

[pushbrk 13,118]

There's no need to call or send information.  Just be ready with answers to any questions about your plans.

 

[loveMDE 17]

30 minutes ago, pushbrk said:

There's no need to call or send information.  Just be ready with answers to any questions about your plans.

 

What are the laws?! I've search and it says that our marriage license would be voided in PA if we married in NC, is that true? In PA saw in one page that  first cousin one remove can marry but I can't find it any where else? I keep reading so many different things. 😭☹️😣

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cousin_marriage_law_in_the_United_States_by_state

[Peot 161]

13 hours ago, loveMDE said:

What are the laws?! I've search and it says that our marriage license would be voided in PA if we married in NC, is that true? In PA saw in one page that  first cousin one remove can marry but I can't find it any where else? I keep reading so many different things. 😭☹️😣

https://en.m.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cousin_marriage_law_in_the_United_States_by_state

If you get married where it is legal to do so - you are married to that person. It doesn't magically get annulled when you cross state borders. HOWEVER there may be limitations as to what you can do with a marriage license across borders where the marriage would not have been legal, for example, with benefits.... 

 

As to the evidence. Print off i94 records (if not including them in a new I-129F form) and show passport stamps. They are much more important than any photographs.

Me and my fiance sent a total of 9 photographs and still got an RFE for not enough evidence that we had met within 2 years. They are most definitely secondary.

[Criza 1]

Is it ok I have an earings to my DS-160 picture?